By Jite Eriabie
Singapore has charged 11 with stealing SGD2.4m ($1.79m) in gas oil from Shell’s Palau Bukom refinery transferring the oil to a tanker bound for Vietnam.
he 11 men were among 17 arrested on Sunday and involved in three incidents of oil theft in November last year and 5 and 7 January this year from Shell’s Bukom refinery offshore mainland Singapore, local press reported.
The 11 were charged on Tuesday with stealing 4,384 tonnes of gas oil from the refinery. The police also seized a 12,888 dwt, Panama-flagged tanker Prime South and SGD3.05m in cash.
According to court documents 1,260 tonnes of gas oil were transferred to the Prime South which was then bound for Vietnam. Equasis lists the 2009-built tanker as Vietnamese owned.
The court charged four Singaporeans with criminal breach of trust for stealing SGD430,000 of gas oil on 5 January. Five other Singaporeans face two counts of siphoning fuel worth SGD2m on 21 November 2017 and 7 January.
Eight of the nine were confirmed to be current or former employees of Shell.
Two Vietnamese men were charged with allegedly receiving 1,260 tonnes of stolen fuel on 7 January.
All 11 could face further charges. Six others arrested have not yet been charged.
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